Reconciliation
by frozen water droplet
Summary: Some would take advantage of this dimension's Batman and Robin, who had no clue of the danger of being involved with him. But not Jason Todd. He saw it as getting yet another chance. This time, unlike so many others, he wouldn't let it slip away.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello! So I pretty much just wanted to stick one of my favorite Robins (Jason) in with YJ!Robin (Dick). A couple notes: First off, Jason comes from a little bit after his team-up with Scarlet and that time he kidnapped Dick and Damian in Batman Reborn. I really didn't like his "evil supervillain" costume that had the bucket helmet, so it's different. He went back to his first Red Hood costume, the one he wore in Under the Red Hood. Also, I'm not a huge fan of him being a ginger, so his hair is black (with the white streak). This takes place after "Denial" in Young Justice.**

**See bottom for more notes.**

OoOoOoO

It happened suddenly, in a burst of light.

Batman had been debriefing the team after their mission to locate Kent Nelson. The team was gathered in a loose half-circle around the Dark Knight, listening idly.

Then, a flash of light, and there was another person in the room with them.

That person was Jason Todd. Who was just as surprised as they were about suddenly appearing in an unfamiliar place.

Jason Todd cursed mentally as seven pairs of eyes were suddenly trying to melt through his red helmet. Unconsciously, he reached for his gun. Then cursed mentally again. He'd lost his jacket (and all the weapons hidden in it) during his fight with Hatter before being transported here. Going on the offensive was not an option. _I guess I'll just have to play nice, _Jason decided.

"Well this is awkward," the Red Hood said as the heroes (and that's all they could've been, really, considering their colorful costumes) stared at him. Jason did a quick count, unconsciously analyzing the situation like he was taught to. Seven heroes total: Batman (_fuck_), Robin (_shit_), guy with gills, guy wearing the S-shield, Kid Flash, girl with arrows, and female Martian Manhunter. Jason had a slim chance of beating the teenagers, but combined with Batman and Robin…? He was so screwed if they decided to attack.

"Who are you? And where did you come from?" Batman demanded, breaking the collective shock of the six other heroes in the room. The Dark Knight seemed to be in charge of this little group, as he appeared to be the oldest person in the room, and all the teenage heroes were oriented towards him. Jason assumed he had interrupted a meeting of sorts. Or, knowing Batman, a lecture.

"Chill, B." Jason noted the Super kid mouthing "B?" at the Martian girl, who just shrugged her shoulders. "I come in peace. And as for how I got here… Pretty sure I took a wrong turn at the portal into the fifth dimension."

Batman narrowed his eyes. "That didn't answer either of my questions."

"Okay I'll admit to not answering the 'who are you?' part. And, yeah, the 'where did you come from?' was total bullshit. I suppose you can call me the Red Hood."

The Dark Knight continued glaring and Jason could tell he was contemplating attack. "The Red Hood was a criminal."

Jason watched as everybody (minus Batman) tensed and shifted uneasily. "But I'm not," Jason said snarkily. He actually kind of enjoyed playing with this Batman. The reactions were a lot less stiff and detached than his Batman. But Jason had his eye on that Robin. He wasn't wearing the shortpants, but the Red Hood did not recognize that variation of the Robin costume. And the Batman costume was varied slightly, too, now that he thought about it. Either this place was far in the future, or it was an alternate dimension…

But no matter what dimension he's in, Jason _knew _that voice. He was 92% sure that this Batman was Bruce.

"We'll see. And _where _did you come from?" Batman said, anger seeping into his voice.

Jason smiled viciously underneath his helmet. A perfect opportunity to test his theory. "Oh, you know. My mother's womb. Gotham city. The Bat cave. Oh, and your girlfriend, Talia's, place. Nice lady. You sure know how to pick 'em."

Robin was looking at Batman, wide-eyed. Jason definitely noticed Batman's mouth twitch at the mention of Talia. _Definitely_ Bruce, then.

"Woah, woah, waoh, hold the phone," Kid Flash interrupted. "Batman has a girlfriend?"

Jason couldn't help but snort at the speedster. And, really, he was surprised the kid had kept his trap shut this long. Speedsters had a tendency to talk a lot.

"Two, if he's still dating that crazy cat lady," Jason said, waggling his eyebrows at Kid Flash (even though the teen couldn't see it).

Batman growled and half of the team reflexively took a step back. The Red Hood was silently proud that his fellow Robin was unfazed. Live with the Bat long enough, and his intimidation tactics become less… intimidating.

"You have ten seconds to tell me _why _you know so much about me and _who the hell you are_."

Jason grinned.

"Just an ex-partner from a different dimension. The usual," Jason said casually, brushing some dust off his armored Kevlar shirt.

Amused, he watched as Bruce's eyes widened and Robin studied his mentor carefully, trying to decide how to react.

"What? No contingency plan? I guess my Batman's a bit more paranoid. And prepared," the anti-hero added. Oh, how he loved to watch the man under the cowl _bristle_…

Batman turned to Robin, and gestured to him. He didn't recognize the hand signal, but Jason figured Robin would.

Bruce turned back to Jason. "You, Robin, and I are going to have a _talk._"

OoOoOoO

"I really don't see the point in handcuffs," Jason said to the young Robin, who was leaning against the wall of the interrogation room.

Jason kicked his feet up onto the metal table and laced his handcuffed hands behind his head. There was a lock pick sewn into one of his gloves, and he tried to subtly get it out. It was in a pocket on the inside of the middle finger of his glove, virtually invisible.

"So…" Jason began. Batman had ordered Robin to watch him while he went out to contact the Justice League.

"Tim Drake?" Jason tried. If this Batman was Bruce, this Robin was probably one of the Robins he had in Jason's dimension. Jason had heard whispers of the Replacement starting a team with a Super clone and a speedster. So, logically, that was his first guess as to who Robin was.

Robin didn't respond, just gave him an odd look.

"That's your name, isn't it?"

"No… My name is—" Robin cut himself off.

So, it wasn't Tim. It couldn't be the little Demon, because he would've gotten riled up at the mention of Talia. And Jason himself was a little shithead when he was Robin. This Boy Wonder was pretty mellow. So that only left…

"Dick?" Jason asked incredulously.

Robin stiffened and Jason immediately knew he was right.

"Holy shit, that's hilarious! You're this dimension's Boy Blunder!" Jason broke into a fit of loud laughter.

(He laughed half because it was _fucking priceless_ and half to cover up the sound of the handcuffs opening.)

Once he finally settled down (_Dick _as _Robin_—_again_), Bruce entered the interrogation room.

Batman sat across from Jason and simply stared into the white-out lenses of the mask under Jason's helmet.

Oh, _very_ intimidating, Bruce.

Jason took his feet off the table and tossed the handcuffs to Batman.

"Ex-partner? Did you not hear that part?" Jason teased smugly.

"Perhaps it was a test," Batman said levelly.

"Some test that was, Bruce," Jason said, purposefully letting Batman's real name slip out.

Batman looked to Robin, asking a silent question.

Robin sighed and said, "He already guessed my secret ID. Though asked if I was 'Tim Drake' first."

Batman went back to glaring at Jason.

Jason put his hands up as a sign of surrender. "Hey, not my fault the Robins of this dimension happen to be the same as Robins of my dimension."

"And who exactly are the Robins of your dimension?"

"Hmmm," Jason said, staring Bruce down thoughtfully. "I'm not sure I should tell you. Wouldn't want to mess with the timeline of this dimension."

Bruce narrowed his eyes. He was displeased by Jason's lack of cooperation.

"How 'bout this?" Jason proposed. "Since we're all buddies here, and it's not like you need to hide your secret IDs with me, why don't we all ditch the masks? Then I'll tell you everything – minus spoilers, of course."

Batman pursed his lips. He wasn't particularly comfortable with the idea of pulling down the cowl or telling Robin to take off his mask, Jason could tell.

Eventually, Batman nodded to Robin before pulling down his cowl. Robin reluctantly pulled off his mask. Jason pushed the hidden button in the back of his helmet that caused it to release and pulled it off. He set it on the table, scrubbing his hair with one hand to get rid of any helmet hair. Gently pushing his fingers underneath the edge of his domino, Jason pried it off.

Jason felt the stares of Bruce and Dick focusing on the white tuft of hair, so stark compared to the rest of his black hair.

It had been so long since he'd seen the eyes of the original Dynamic Duo, but Jason instantly knew their eyes were the exact same shade of blue in both dimensions.

"Better. That wasn't so hard, now was it, Brucie?"

Bruce narrowed his eyes.

Oh, how did Jason enjoy trolling the shit out of people.

"Your full name, if that isn't too much of a 'spoiler'?" Bruce prompted.

Jason cocked his head and briefly contemplated not telling him.

Oh, what the fuck. "Jason Todd, at your service," Jason said, giving an exaggerated bow.

"And why exactly are you not Robin anymore?" Bruce asked, folding his arms over his chest. Dick's blue eyes sparkled as he focused in on Jason, interested in the older man's answer.

Jason sobered, joking mood evaporating like water in a desert. He narrowed his eyes at Bruce, debating on what he should say.

Bruce noticed the Red Hood's change of demeanor.

Jason could tell the truth. And have this world's Batman and Robin a) not trust him, b) throw him in Arkham, c) pity him, or d) grudgingly give him a chance to prove himself.

None of those options were beneficial to Jason.

Jason could lie, saying he was a good little Robin and currently a hero. And have this world's Batman and Robin a) trust him, b) accept him, c) (possibly) provide him with companionship he'd been missing , or d) unwittingly provide Jason with a second chance (or perhaps a third).

_Another chance._ As those words ran through Jason's head, the tiniest bud of hope began to bloom. He wasn't sure what chance he was on – third or fourth or whatever – but the idea was more than appealing. He could be a new person in this dimension. He didn't _have _to be the Robin that died; the Robin that went to the dark side.

And, more than that, Jason wouldn't have to be alone anymore. His cheap, dark apartment felt so _empty _and _unfulfilling_ sometimes. The fact that it looked so un-lived in sometimes twisted his stomach into knots. Jason didn't really have anybody that wanted him around. (For a while, there was that Scarlet chick, but she took off.) Honestly, if Jason died, Bruce would only feel the _obligatory _guilt for his estranged sidekick that was six feet under for the second time. Nobody would even miss him while he was in this dimension.

But this… This new world he'd stumbled across looked like America did to immigrants escaping persecution in their home country: a chance at freedom, and better yet, happiness.

And, honestly, after all that he'd been through, who was he to deny this perfect, perfect opportunity?

So he lied. Blatantly.

"My Batman and I had a huge fight," Jason began, voice emotionless. He did not want to betray the agony he still felt over the real chain of events that led up to him becoming the Red Hood. Especially because if any unwanted emotions slipped out, Bruce would probably call him out on his lie.

"I said he treated me like a kid, and he said that's because I acted like one. Eventually we both were so blinded by rage that he said he didn't believe in me and I quit as Robin. I went off the grid and took up the mantle of the Red Hood so I could infiltrate the Gotham Underground. I worked for months to build a reputation as a 'criminal.' Once I'd gotten some seriously incriminating evidence that could put half of one of the major mobs in jail for life, I went back to the Cave to tell Bruce what I had and apologize for the things I said. But when I got there, I found out that he'd already replaced me as Robin with some other kid. Needless to say, any desire to reconcile myself to him disappeared."

Bruce and Dick digested the story, carefully thinking over everything that they'd heard.

"It's still tense with him," Jason admitted. "But I work with some allies of his from time to time. I kept the name Red Hood because my cover as a criminal had been blown so there was really no point in finding a different name."

Bruce nodded thoughtfully. "If I may ask, how did you become Robin in the first place?"

Jason smiled wickedly, previous stoic façade gone as he recalled some of his best memories. "Oh, it's quite the story," he said, faking coyness.

Dick smirked at the older man's tone. How Jason became Robin was probably less tragic than how he gained the mantle if the man's lightheartedness had anything to do with it.

"Well, Bruce had parked the Batmobile in an alley. Imagine his surprise when he came back to find his car on cinderblocks with three of its tires missing and some tiny street kid working on the fourth."

Jason sighed dramatically. "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if he'd shown up thirty seconds later."

Dick snickered at the image of Batman glaring at a kid holding a tire iron.

"One long, uh, 'chat' later and I was Robin."

Jason noticed Bruce's lips quirk up infinitesimally. He grinned smugly.

"Is that all you wanted to know, Bruce?" Jason asked.

"How many Robins are there in your dimension? It seems as if you, Dick, and that 'Tim Drake' were Robins, so that's at least three. Whereas in our dimension we only have one," Bruce said.

"Hm," Jason thought. "Five, I believe. I haven't actually met the fourth in person, though."

Bruce pondered the idea of a Robin other than Dick. It was strange, he decided. Dick had invented the Robin persona.

"Well, there's also your _other_ sidekick. Four of them, though they weren't Robins…"

"Other sidekick?" Dick asked skeptically.

Jason raised his eyebrows. "No other Bats in this dimension, then." Darn, Batgirl was kinda hot.

Robin stared at him like the the answer to the unasked question was in his face.

"Are we done here?" Jason asked.

"I suppose," Batman replied. "The Justice League will work to find a way to get you back to your dimension."

_Yay, _Jason thought. _I can't wait to go home. Back to the empty apartment and the threat of being taken back to Arkham by Batman (no, Nighwing; Dick was never meant to wear the cowl)._ Fact was, Jason wasn't dead anymore, but he wasn't really living. Sure, he shot criminals every night, but that's all he'd really done with his second chance at life. And several attempts on Batman and Robin's lives that always made him feel pathetic when he failed. The only things that had really happened to him were bad things. Case in point: being sent to Arkham. Let's lock Jason up with his worst enemies like he's insane. (_I'm not—I'm _not _insane. I'm just _angry.) Oh yeah, Jason was having the time of his life in his own dimension. Getting transported to this place where Dick was still a kid wearing the R-patch and Bruce wasn't angry was probably the highlight of his second life. So the Justice League could take their time finding him a way back into his own dimension.

Bruce and Dick exchanged a glance as they watched emotions flit across their interdimensional visitor's face. He appeared to be lost in thought.

"You can stay here in the mountain until we find a more permanent arrangement," Bruce said, bringing Jason out of his thoughts.

Like clockwork, Bruce received an incoming transmission, pressing a finger to the comm-link in his ear.

"I'll be right there," Bruce said to whoever was on the other end.

"Robin," he ordered, pulling his cowl up. "Put your mask back on and introduce Jason to the team. I will inform Aqualad of the situation once I return. The League needs me."

"Sure thing," Robin replied as Batman swept out of the room. Dick took a moment to secure his mask on his face. "Bruce wants me to keep my identity a secret," he explained after a second. Jason stood up and stuffed his domino into one of his pant pockets. "You aren't going to put your mask back on?"

"Nah," Jason replied. "I don't really see the point in hiding my identity. Nobody in this dimension knows who I am. And Batman didn't order me not to."

"It'll probably be pretty whelming, not having to hide your identity," Robin said wistfully.

Jason simply cocked an eyebrow at Dick's choice of words. No matter what dimension he was in, Dick was always a dork.

"Everyone's overwhelmed or underwhelmed, but nobody's just whelmed," the boy explained after an awkward pause. Jason rolled his eyes and chuckled as he tucked his helmet underneath his arm.

As Dick opened the door, Jason decided that this Robin was innocent and hadn't been dragged through the mud by the world like Nightwing had. He wanted to keep Dick from going through that, he found.

Jason would befriend this younger version of Dick. He'd be a brother to him, the kind he'd never been to the Robins of his world. He would protect this Robin. Like he should have back in his Gotham.

OoOoOoO

**A/N: I didn't really like how this turned out. I felt like it was rushed and chaotic and Jason was just one big rollercoaster of emotion. I'll probably come back and change this at some point.**

**But, that was the first chapter! I'd love to get some feedback! What did you like/not like? I'd love some constructive criticism.**

**Also, I have a tumblr. I post about a lot of Bat family/Young Justice stuff, so you guys might like it. I also talk about my writing and may post some spoilers. It's frozen-water-droplet . tumblr . com**

**Reviews are much appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Second chapter! Thank you for the reviews/alerts/favorites. I was surprised at the response. :) So this chapter Jason meets the team and Batman and co. decide what to do with him. Just a quick note: Jason dislikes some people and hates on them (coughcough Tim coughcough) but I ****do not ****share that opinion. Jason's pretty bitter and angry about a lot of things. Batman went around and told pretty much everybody about Jason, but you don't see that, so I thought I'd mention that. Also, I'm trying to keep all the ships cannon, since I'm trying to keep everyone as IC as possible (even though I'm not really a Spitfire fan), but I kinda feel like Artemis and Jason are being kinda… flirty. Sorry 'bout that. But I can already tell you, they will be GREAT friends. ;) So, tell me if you find any mistakes and I'll fix them. Enjoy!**

OoOoOoO

"So did you start this little team?" Jason asked as the pair exited the interrogation room.

"Yep," said Dick cheerily. "Me and Kid Flash and Aqualad and Superboy."

"That's cool," Jason replied. "In my world this team was different."

Namely, Robin was the Replacement instead of Dick.

He'd heard of the little team the pretender was on, since he kept tabs on the little shit, but hadn't really been interested in "Young Justice." He only really took notice when most of that team merged into the Teen Titans. Then he went over and screwed with the kid's head. Because it was _fun_.

"You probably don't want to give away any 'spoilers,' right?"

Jason snickered. Oh, the chick Robin made for some good jokes.

Dick raised his eyebrows underneath his domino. Jason only noticed because he was used to reading expressions under masks.

"Inside joke from my dimension," he explained.

Robin simply smiled and they finished the walk to where the team was in silence. They went through a large archway and into a wide open multi-purpose room. Going down some steps, the sound of quiet chatter drifted towards them. Jason and Dick walked into a kitchen-like area where the other five team members were gathered. They had all changed into civvies except for the guy with gills (who he was guessing was Aqualad) and who he assumed was Superboy.

"Team, meet our guest," Robin introduced him. "Guest, meet the team."

Jason surveyed the faces of the teens in the room. Most were curious, some a bit guarded, one full of food…

"Red Hood. But you can call me Jason Todd," Jason said, breaking the silence.

"Kaldur'ahm of Atlantis. I am the leader of this team," Aqualad said. Hm, so Robin wasn't the leader? That was certainly a change of pace.

"I'm Miss Martian," the girl with red hair and green skin piped in. "Or just M'gann."

"Artemis," the girl with long blond hair stated. She gave him a long, contemplative look, her eyes sweeping up and down his form. Jason met her hazel gaze in an unspoken challenge. This girl was edgy and _very _different from the goody two-shoes Martian. Jason decided he liked her.

Their little staring contest was broken when somebody else began to speak. "Superboy," a dark-haired teen grunted grudgingly.

Jason looked at Robin questioningly, as if to say, "Is there a reason he doesn't like me?"

Dick cackled softly. "Don't worry about SB. He's not much of a people-person."

Jason shrugged, deciding that was acceptable.

"And I'm Wally West," the red-head said, mouth full with the turkey sandwich he was eating. "AKA Kid Flash, fastest boy alive."

Artemis scrunched up her nose. "I've come to accept the fact that you'll never stop eating, Wally, but could you _at least _not talk with your mouth full?"

Wally purposely chewed with his mouth open obnoxiously in her direction.

"But he can't do that," Jason quipped. "Since his mouth is always full, he'd never be able to talk. And I can tell how absolutely _devastating _that would be."

Surprisingly, both Artemis and Robin broke into loud laughter at that. M'gann giggled quietly and Kaldur smiled. Even Superboy looked less grumpy.

Wally swallowed, frowning. "Hey," he protested.

"Oh, wow," Artemis said, breathless from laughter. "I can tell it's going to be fun having you around, Jason."

Jason smirked. "I've been told that I make quite an impact on poor, unsuspecting criminals – heroes, even. They never know what hit 'em."

"Well you certainly made quite an entrance earlier," M'gann chipped in, smiling. That girl was just all sugar and rainbows, wasn't she?

"Yeah, dude, spilling all of Bats' deep, dark secrets? That was pretty boss," Wally said, having already gotten over the insults Jason had hurled at him. "Anything you'd like to share with the class?"

Oh, so the speedster was asking for an exclusive on the Batman? That, he could do. Jason opened his mouth, ready to dish out some Bat-brand gossip, when Robin cut him off.

"Aaaand we're done here," Dick drawled dryly. He grabbed Jason's arm and tugged him away from the team. "C'mon, Jason, I'll show you where you can sleep."

Jason gave a mock-salute to the team before allowing himself to be pulled away.

He and Robin walked in silence for a moment before Dick finally said something. "Dude! Not cool. I told you Bats wanted me to keep my identity a secret," he said, a hint of sourness in his voice.

Jason put a hand on his shoulder. "Relax, kid. I wasn't going to tell them anything. Just mess with them a bit. Sorry, though. I get keeping your identity a secret. I was undercover as a criminal. Spill my ID and I would've been a dead man."

Jason smiled slightly, trying to reassure the kid he wasn't out to ruin him and his mentor. (Though, in another world, he was.) He wasn't very good at the whole 'apologizing' thing or the 'comforting' thing. To be honest, his people skills were rusty. He could do sarcasm and anger, but that was about it. If he was going to be serious about this whole 'brother' thing, he'd need to get back in the loop.

But Jason felt a little bit better when Dick tentatively smiled.

"No, it was my fault for overreacting. I just really hate hiding from my friends, y'know? Wally and Bruce and Alfred are the only people who know everything, and it gets a little frustrating I guess. I want to tell the team, but Bats insists that I can't. Gets a little lonely…"

Jason internally shied away from the situation. He knew loneliness like the back of his hand, but that didn't mean he knew how to deal with it.

"Well, at least you have them, right? You could have a lot less," Jason tried. _You could live on the streets. You could have died. You could have no one at all._

Jason resisted the urge to add, "You have me." It was too soon for that, and why was he even thinking that? God, he'd been in this world a total of forty-five minutes and he was already spouting sentimental crap. Maybe not being around normal, well-adjusted people at like any time in his life made him emotionally stunted. Huh. That was definitely one theory.

"That's true," Dick said, smile growing. "Anyway, here's your room."

OoOoOoO

Jason was sprawled on the large green couch, lazily watching TV.

Black Canary wandered into the living room area. She was the only other person in the mountain; the team and Red Tornado were each out doing something or other.

It was the day after he had first appeared in this dimension. He'd been very briefly introduced to the 'den mothers', Black Canary and Red Tornado. Batman told them all about him, he was sure.

"Would you like to spar, Jason?" She asked. Half because there wasn't really much else to do and half because she hadn't yet had the opportunity to assess his skills.

Jason looked up at her, grinning. "I'd love to." He was excited at the chance to blow off some steam after doing nothing for the past day.

OoOoOoO

"Hmm," Canary hummed. The pair were circling each other, tense and waiting for the other to attack. "I can definitely tell that Bruce trained you."

Jason cocked an eyebrow, beads of sweat forming. "And why is that?"

She laughed shortly, just a rough exhale of air. "Your style has elements of his signature type of fighting. And yet you also mimic Robin's acrobatics."

Indulging her, Jason flipped through the air once, feigning an aerial kick to her collarbone. But then he seamlessly landed in a crouch and kicked Canary's feet out from underneath her. Once the woman felt herself falling, she arched back and melted into a perfect back handspring.

Neither of them went on the offensive, so they ended up circling each other again. That was how their fight had gone for the past half hour and that's how it continued. They'd exchange a few blows, the other blocking and neither gaining the upper hand. Then the pair would go back to prowling in a circle until someone went on the offensive.

After a particularly powerful left hook that Canary just barely dodged, Jason and the older woman jumped apart again.

"And then there's also your individual style mixed in with Batman and Robin's. The harsh, aggressive, and confrontational form of fighting. It's unpredictable and clearly meant to hurt, but I can tell how controlled it is. You certainly don't pull your punches like Batman," Canary assessed, narrowing her eyes. "And some of the places you aim for are clearly meant to temporarily paralyze or possibly even kill."

Jason snorted, effectively hiding his unease at how good she was at figuring him out. "Lady, for four years, I was in deep cover as a crime lord. Flipping around like Robin would've gotten me recognized and killed. Pulling my punches would've made me look soft. I had to adapt my style to fit my cover."

"Then why still use it?" Black Canary challenged.

Jason shrugged. "Do something a certain way for long enough and it becomes an integral part of your fighting style. I spent long enough training as Robin," _imitating Dick_, "that I often use acrobatics. I spent long enough pretending to be a crime lord that I fight dirty."

They circled each other several more times before the blonde woman finally replied. "I suppose that makes sense."

Finally she relaxed from her fighting position and Jason followed suit. "Want to take a break and grab some water?" she asked.

"Sure," Jason replied easily.

The pair walked over to the edge of the training room where they had placed two water bottles earlier. Jason picked his up, unscrewing the lid and chugging a good half of it. It was still cool.

Black Canary sat against the wall, drinking her water. Tired, Jason sat down, too.

"Jason, can I ask you something?" the woman inquired after a long silence. "You don't have to answer, but…"

"Shoot," Jason grunted.

"Did you ever kill anybody while you were undercover?"

Jason nearly choked on his water at her forwardness and suddenness, but he forcefully swallowed. He would not allow the shrink of the Justice League see any emotion that he didn't want her to see.

Jason sighed and ran his hands through his hair, damp with sweat.

_Yes._

_I've killed lots of people._

_And I wasn't even undercover._

"Indirectly," he admitted after some internal debate about the best answer. "Some from injuries I gave them. Some from infections. And some were killed because I got involved in crime in Gotham."

Jason lowered his voice into a whisper.

"A total of seventeen people's deaths are on my hands."

_That _was a blatant lie. So many more than that were killed by the Red Hood himself.

Black Canary put her warm hand on Jason's shoulder. "I'm sorry; that must be really hard for you. But I hope you know that there's nothing you can do now but move on from your mistakes. You can't bring them back from the dead."

Jason wanted to laugh. _Really badly._ How had this conversation gone from pretending he felt guilt over the people he's killed to how the dead coming back to life was physically impossible? Of course Canary didn't know what those words meant to him, but Jason felt hysterical laughter bubbling up inside him, itching to be released. It was just so _ironic_. And, admittedly, painful to think about. His death and resurrection were hard to think about. Bruce and Dick and Tim and Alfred and Damian were hard to think about. His sheer loneliness was hard to think about it. And most of all, the fact that he'd fallen _so far _from his pixie-boots days was impossible to think about. Everything was painful, really. He tried to keep the thinking and flashbacks to a minimum.

Black Canary noticed Jason's troubled features (though, they weren't troubled for the reason she thought) and changed the subject.

"Do you want to go back and spar some more?"

"That'd be nice," Jason said, standing up with a tiny smile of gratitude.

OoOoOoO

The meeting was relatively small; just Aqualad, Batman, Robin, Black Canary, and Red Tornado. They convened in one of the lounge areas near the kitchen. The room was dotted with couches, and everyone minus Batman and Aqualad sat. Batman stood stiff and formal as per usual, while his protégé slumped on the couch. Red Tornado was his usual emotionless robot self. Canary sat with her normal good posture and mellow attitude with her hands folded in her lap.

"I assume this meeting is about our visitor," Aqualad said from where he was standing near Robin with his arms casually folded over his chest.

"Correct," Batman affirmed. "We need to decide what we are going to do with Jason. Do we invite him to join the team? Is he going to live in the mountain permanently? But before we make those decisions, Canary, you spent some time with him today. What is your opinion of him?"

The blonde woman sat back slightly. "Well, first of all, he has more fighting experience than Robin and he and I were pretty evenly matched."

Bruce made a mental note of that. If Jason could match Black Canary, the man was near to Bruce's fighting level. Rather impressive, really.

"Jason also has a very… unique fighting style. It has striking similarities to both Batman and Robin's styles. But he also has elements of his own unique style that were obviously developed by him. Jason's highly adaptable in combat, which is a very good quality."

Canary paused, debating the best way to phrase what she was going to say next. No, she wasn't going to tell Bruce about Jason's brutal methods. She figured the older teen would tell Batman whenever he was ready. Plus, Jason was smart enough to tone down his current force as to not raise suspicion.

"I also managed to get Jason to talk a bit about his past. Everything he said backed up what he told you initially. When I asked him a very personal question, he was surprisingly open about his answer. Jason's pretty complex underneath all his sarcasm and snark. He's a bit unstable, but seemingly loyal. His heart's in the right place. I've been lead to believe that he's very trustworthy."

The room fell silent; its occupants digesting the woman's assessment. Batman was secretly pleased that he could trust their inter-dimensional visitor. He and Robin could always use an ally in Gotham…

"So now that we've determined he isn't a sociopath, what will his arrangements be?" Red Tornado asked in his metallic, robotic voice.

There was a contemplative silence for a moment, then: "I believe the best course of action would be to invite him to join the team."

It was Aqualad, surprisingly.

Aqualad backpedaled. "From what you have told me, Batman, both Green Lanterns and the Martian Manhunter are looking to find a way to get him back to his own dimension. Though, they are stumped. Since it appears he will be here a while, and his introduction to the team went exceptionally well, I think it would be a good idea."

"Not to mention he has phenomenal training," Robin added. Kaldur shot him a grateful look for backing him up.

"It would be up to Jason," Batman decided.

_Yes,_ Robin thought.

"Where will he stay?" Robin asked, posing the question that had been on nearly everybody's mind.

"Miss Martian and Superboy live full-time in the cave, perhaps he could, too," Red Tornado said.

"No. He can come live with Robin and me," Batman said, finality ringing in his tone.

"Yeah, he was Robin in a different dimension, right? So it'd only be natural for him to live with us," Robin said cheerfully. Excitement suffused through him at the idea of having another person in the empty Wayne Manor.

_I'm not always nice, but when I am, I am the most generous person you'll ever meet. _Robin internally laughed at his joke.

"So it's settled, then?" Black Canary asked. Everyone nodded in affirmation. "Then perhaps we should inform Jason of these developments."

OoOoOoO

Dick was dragging Jason excitedly from his room, babbling something about cookies and Gotham and Batman being a good parent. Jason followed Dick, going along with whatever he was saying, nodding occasionally.

(Ha. Bruce? A _good parent_? That was a good one.)

Eventually he was in the living area where Aqualad, Batman, Black Canary, and Red Tornado were. Dick pulled him over to sit next to him on the couch.

"So…" Jason started, a bit awkwardly. "What's up?"

"We have discussed it," Aqualad said. "And we have decided that, if you would like, you may join the team."

Jason blinked. Well that was… forward. He understood that he wouldn't be going back to his own dimension any time soon (and was it weird that he _did not care at all_?), but this kinda blindsided him. Jason? On a team? Again? Sure, he'd been on the Titans—_no, I was never a member of the Teen Titans, _Jason had to remind himself. _I didn't even get a memorial when I died. The time I spent with them meant nothing_. But this team wasn't the Titans. Maybe… maybe he could actually be a part of this team. Maybe he could learn how to feel like he _belonged_. So why not? What was the worst that could happen? (Purple and green and _red_ flashed in the back of his mind, but he ignored it.)

"Okay," Jason replied shrugging. He could practically hear Dick's mental cheer.

"You will be staying with Robin and me for the time being, as well," Bruce said.

Jason brain stopped functioning for a moment.

He was staying with Batman and Robin…?

As in, Bruce and Dick…?

As in, _Wayne Manor_?

Jason smiled and nodded to cover up his internal surprise. Robin started babbling, and the corner of Bruce's lips twitched up infinitesimally.

He was on autopilot as he followed the Dynamic Duo to the Zeta teleporter. Jason didn't even notice when Batman entered into the computer's log and it identified him as "Red Hood B08." Batman and Robin stepped into the teleporter and Jason followed numbly behind. Once the bright yellowish light faded, he was in a telephone booth. He methodically opened the door and re-joined the Dark Knight and the Boy Wonder.

But none of this registered in his mind.

He was too shocked (and maybe a little nervous, too, but he'd never admit that).

Because, for the first time in a long time, he was going to be in the Batcave.

For the first time since he'd _died_, he was going to walk the halls of Wayne Manor.

For the first time since he'd dug himself out of his own grave, he was going to see Alfred.

(And so what if it wasn't _his _Gotham he was in? So what if these people weren't the Bruce, Alfred and Dick he knew? _It was close enough._)

For the first time in five years, he was going _home._

And he'd never been happier.

OoOoOoO

**A/N: Phew. That was actually kinda hard to write. And this isn't my favorite chapter, since it's mostly character development and necessary interactions. If you live in the US, happy Memorial Day! I'll do my best to get the next chapter up before Sunday. My school's still in session until June 13****th****, so I still have that to deal with. :/ Constructive criticism would be really nice; I'd love your advice on how to improve my writing. Feedback also makes me very, very happy. :)**

**Quick note: either next chapter or the one after that, I will get into putting Jason into the actual episodes, starting with Downtime. He won't be in **_**every **_**episode, because not every team member is in every episode. He'll be in all of the episodes with the entire team, and select few with only a fraction of the team present. And for the ones he isn't in, he'll be off doing something else. And since this is a Jason-centric story, I'll only mention the missions he wasn't on/any developments that are necessary to the plot. Once I get through to the end of season 1, (or maybe before, this is still a WIP) I will take the story in its own direction. So, what are your opinions on that?**

**Thanks for reading!**


End file.
